Burglars ransack home while family at hospital with sick son
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SEATTLE -- A woman worried about her son in the intensive care unit at Children's Hospital had more to worry about than her child's health.
While she was holding vigil by her son over the weekend, someone ransacked her house in Marysville.
Eight-year-old Sam's seizures had worsened in the past week. The boy, who lives with a pacemaker, is a hospital regular, but his single mom says this was her most frightening visit.
"My son is weak already, so to get pneumonia and flu on top of it,, we weren't sure we were taking him home," said Tamsin Gunter. "Every ounce of fight he had in him was going to breathing."
While Sam fought for his life with Mom at his side, someone broke into their home.
"I just heard (the) doctor say, 'We're not out of the woods yet,' then my son tells me someone came in and stole a bunch of our stuff,'" said Gunter, whose 12-year-old son discovered the break-in on Sunday.
"Things were everywhere," said Austin Gunter. "Cabinets were knocked down, and drawers were pulled out."
On Monday, Sam was well enough to head home where Austin took his mother along the burglar's trail.
"Oh, they took all of it," said Tamsin.
Gone are clothes, a TV and heirlooms. Missing are irreplaceable pieces she'd planned to pass on to her children.
"They're all gone. My jewelry boxes are actually gone," said Tamsin. "The ones with great-grandma's pearl necklace, my wedding jewelry -- it's all gone."
Also taken was Austin's PlayStation 3, a link to the boys' late father.
"He purchased that after his dad died, because they used to play games together like that," said Tamsin.
For once, Tamsin is grateful her child was in the hospital and not home when thieves broke in.
"It's just stuff," she said. "My son's home, and I've got good kids."
And she now has two baseball bats by the door.
While she was holding vigil by her son over the weekend, someone ransacked her house in Marysville.
Eight-year-old Sam's seizures had worsened in the past week. The boy, who lives with a pacemaker, is a hospital regular, but his single mom says this was her most frightening visit.
"My son is weak already, so to get pneumonia and flu on top of it,, we weren't sure we were taking him home," said Tamsin Gunter. "Every ounce of fight he had in him was going to breathing."
While Sam fought for his life with Mom at his side, someone broke into their home.
"I just heard (the) doctor say, 'We're not out of the woods yet,' then my son tells me someone came in and stole a bunch of our stuff,'" said Gunter, whose 12-year-old son discovered the break-in on Sunday.
"Things were everywhere," said Austin Gunter. "Cabinets were knocked down, and drawers were pulled out."
On Monday, Sam was well enough to head home where Austin took his mother along the burglar's trail.
"Oh, they took all of it," said Tamsin.
Gone are clothes, a TV and heirlooms. Missing are irreplaceable pieces she'd planned to pass on to her children.
"They're all gone. My jewelry boxes are actually gone," said Tamsin. "The ones with great-grandma's pearl necklace, my wedding jewelry -- it's all gone."
Also taken was Austin's PlayStation 3, a link to the boys' late father.
"He purchased that after his dad died, because they used to play games together like that," said Tamsin.
For once, Tamsin is grateful her child was in the hospital and not home when thieves broke in.
"It's just stuff," she said. "My son's home, and I've got good kids."
And she now has two baseball bats by the door.
Only baseball bats?... A twin barrel shotgun with deer slugs would be more effective! | I shoot often enough I can hit just about anywhere within 20-30 feet which is about the 'longest straight hall' of my pace .. I won't be shooting to wound if some bozo is dumb enough to break in when I am home... all I'll be saying is... 'its hunting season!'
Until society takes this seriously (Drug addiction) and looks at the whole picture and not just the emotional outbursts of hate towards the offenders, nothing will change. There are a lot of people in pain and dispair, the only relief is getting high. No one has ever intervened when they needed it, those selling it just want to keep them sick. We have to be willing to not turn a blind eye to children in need or mental illness and we need to start investing in our communities. Make sure that children know that there is hope, that they have a value and a future. Stop the effing war on drugs!! Re-invest that money back into cleaning up our neighborhoods, afterschool programs, intervention, rehab clinics, whatever it takes. Please stop and try to see the whole issue.
I am sickend to read this article. Heart breaking. The feeling of being violated never goes away and every noise heard thereafter, makes your heart race. Burglars should be prosecuted harshly - especially those of this generation that have no idea what it is like to work hard for things in life.    Sounds like there are many good souls out there that want to help. I suggest also timers, to include a tv/radio turning off and on at unexpected times, and a dog with a loud bark is helpful.  Wasp spray is a great idea.
Special place in h**l for these types of "people". Security and peace of mind will never be the same sadly.
Problem Solvers has been contacted about a fund set up for this family.............
Marysville has become a scary City to live in. Been hit TWICE in two months. Neighbors hit once and vandalized. PLEASE PLEASE fix this City Officials!
@n700bnd EVERYONE IN MARYSVILLE BE A LITTLE MORE VIGILANT HELP YOUR POLICE OFFICERS GET THESE SCUM BAGS
@DISPATCH911 When my house was robbed, the POLICE... didnt have a lot of interest in doing much at all. Casually told me, "M'am, there's not much we can do - we go to 3 or 4 of these a day. YOU call US if you get any leads." handed me a blank report and left. Then less than two months later - we were hit AGAIN.Â
I am going to see about getting money together to get Austin a new PS3. Sammy and Austin are cousins of mine.
This is one of my good friends, Austin.
It brought me to tears while I was reading this. He is such a great person, and whoever did this should be locked up in a mental asylum or worse.
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@Shannon LaVelle How do we help? Â
I'm not sure how they got in, as it doesn't say, but i would recommend wood sticks in the windows and sliding glass door so they would have to break them if they wanted in. Also at least a deadbolt and regular lock on every door. The door you use to enter should be dead bolted every time you leave. If there's doors you never enter the house through when returning home, you should get some foot locks and such. Also, for all doors and windows, i would put magnetic and glass shatter detection sensors on them that will trigger a LOUD LOUD siren. Loud enough to wake your neighbors from a dead sleep with earmuffs on. Might also want to rig a camera pointed at the street or other entry points on your property. I would also try to keep a car in the driveway at all times if at all possible. Lighting is important as well. I'm a real home security nut. Nothing is more important than the safety of your family.Â
Would love to replace their video game or treat them to the Great Wolf Lodge. If Komo has a fund set-up or someone else that is reputable (must assume scammers read these stories as well), I'll pitch in.
I appreciate the suggestions of not keeping a bat by the door and using wasp spray or a gun. I have some spray, bat is moved and i do not currently own a gun but not because I am against them so it will be something I look into. I don't know what to say as far as people wanting to help or donate. It is very kind and generous however I obviosly dont want my address sent out publicly. We are trying to find comfort in being home again and still learning all that is gone.
I understand why they took the money, tv , game system, ipod, jewelry and the other stuff of value, it is the stealing my clothes, make up, purses and especially the little costume jewelry my kds got me when they were younger that has no value to them that surprises me and really hits me hard. The fact that they threw things around and broke things just cause breaks my heart. Most of all though I am deeply saddened that my 12yr old son found it this way and had to break it to me. I pray that we all feel safe and comfortable once again and I hope it doesnt take long. Other than the sentimental value of many of the things that were taking, In the end it remains true that it is just stuff and eventually some will be replaced and some never will but my family is safe and did not get hurt so for that I am extremely grateful. Sam is resting in his own bed and I am trying to figure out how to sleep comfortably tonight
@tmsnjy
Iâm very sorry to hear about the theft, but please be comforted in knowing that you still have your most precious gifts, and there are many kind hearted strangers who are willing to help you out.
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If you do decide to purchase a gun, please, please take a safety course. Enroll your oldest in one too if you can. Buying a gun wonât make you safe unless you know how to safely handle it. I took classes and participated in some fun shoots, and am very comfortable with my firearms, so I cannot recommend the classes enough.
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I had my home broken into too, so I know how it feels. The people who do something like that are cowards and bullies; thatâs why they take or break items of no value to them - just to be that much more hurtful. They are pitiful excuses for human beings.
Maam, I am truely sorry that someone took something so special to your sons... i am really glad that your son was able to come home to be with you... still i am sitting in shock. I am sure you will get the things replaced but its the small things that your great kids gave you that will always stay in your heart... I would like to do something for the boys. I am a soldier but part time nerd. I have a psp that I dont use anymore and would love to give to them but if you would like to send some pics to me of there dad and you and maybe some family pics, i can upload them to the psp so this way they will always have it!! you can email me at sandman.sanders1@us.army.mil. i am also going to get some of my friends on board and maybe do more. I am so so sorry for everything that has happened to you but know your strength in your family and love is amazing. i will hold your family in my prayers and please contact me if needed.Â
@tmsnjy I'm really sorry for the stress in your life. Keeping you and yours in my throughts. Wish I could do more. xoxo
 @tmsnjy Thoughts and prayers with you. Thankfully I have only been through this once and I was your sons age at the time but sadly we were home and I woke up to it so be thankful that didn't happen....just a suggestion put flashlights next to their beds just incase they feel the need to look in corners
So much addiction to short-acting, highly addictive drugs these days, which causes the repeated, immediate need for cash that druggy losers don't have. So they steal from anywhere they can. Over and over. It is an epidemic. They jones for a fix, and each fix costs money, then the enforcer says "pay up or die" and they steal.
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If you truly think about how many people are meth or heroin addicted and without income, then we get a small idea of how prevalent crime is/will be. Frightening to think.
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And, I wholeheartedly hope that this family will have good things coming their way. And it does sound like the mother has done a good job with a hard situation that would tax many to the breaking point.Â
Sorry to hear first of Sam's health problems, poor kid, the loss of a father and husband and now being victimized by creeps. I hope whomever is caught. Tire of people taking advantage of others. I wish this family the best moving forward and hope things will get easier.
I know this family personally, and they are an amazing family who has had way more than their fair share or hard times. Poor Sam is an amazing inspirational bot who hasnt had an easy day in his life but still manages to smile. I truly hope that they can at least get their heirlooms back and that these jerks get caught and punished...Love you T!!
It's amazing how often we hear about this in the news. Bottom of the barrel scum of the earth participates in burglaries/theft. Perhaps we can learn something from Saudi Arabia in cases like this. The chopping off of an arm/hand or a firing squad would do wonders to cleaning up our streets and ridding ourselves of the common criminal. Castration might help too.Â
what i would like to say i can not on here but wishing there was pictures of these crooks some were,i would like to take them fishing.only god knows.get better sam.
More evidence on how far down our society is sinking. What do you do? Thieves are the heartless scum of society. But this is nothing new. Many years ago, this happened to a friend of mine while she was on vacation. They took everything but a few stuffed animals. They emptied the freezer of everything too. All but one bag of frozen, mixed vegetables. That they left in the middle of the living room to rot until she came home to discover what had happened. Oh, and one other thing, it was obvious these thieves where uneducated enough to not know how a toilet works either. This was over 30 years ago (before DNA darn it!), but it shows there are no shortages of people out there ready to take everything you have. If this family had been home, I have no doubt these thieves would have murdered them as well. I say this family got lucky by not being home when these creeps decided to swoop down on this house!
 @Joy Johnson Evidence that society is sinking? This stuff has been going on for decades. People have burglarized while people were at funerals forever, and they have just basically burglarized forever.  I'm just so tired of the "oh, society is sinking lower...." stuff constantly.  No. actually the crime rates are much lower than they've been for a long time. Yes, there is an uptick of crimes but STILL not even close to where we were in the early 90s, and even early 2000s (that is a function of the $$ lost by states and counties in the housing collapse of 2007/2008, coming out of our public service budgets.  But can we give it a rest on the "oh society is collapsing" comments?  IT's ridiculous. Maybe people should watch some old tv police shows based on actual cases, as I am right now.  You think that this stuff was just invented this year?  Â
@Joy Johnson Agreed, how can on wake up and go about their day knowing they've stolen from others and caused heartache. It is simply disgusting and scary.
If there's a way to donate money to this family we'll help out, as I'm sure many people will.
Someone taking $$$ or Item donations for these people?
"And she now has two baseball bats by the door."
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I'm sorry for your loss but if you think keeping baseball bats by the door are going to help you if you get robbed again, forget it. Get a shotgun or a Taurus Judge.Â
 @NW-Economist She has two young boys at home and you suggest she buy a gun? Kids are notoriously unpredictable around guns, how much more do you want her to lose? Brilliant...
 @justmyopinion  @NW-Economist Oh my god! How did kids ever co-exist with guns before for the last few hundred years!? I have NO idea...!
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Maybe it has something to do with parental responsibility, seems to not have been a problem for the history of our country...
 @NW-Economist Leaving a bat by the door is a bad idea. It can be used against you if the door is kicked in when you do not have a chance to get to the door.
 @NW-Economist That judge is one mofo of a home defense weapon. .410 buckshot and you have a viable alternative to the 12 gauge.Â
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I personally love the shotgun though. Something about racking a shotgun in the middle of the night to make the intruder automatically think "oh crap."
Seems like law enforcement needs to deal with how the theives are selling this stuff. They should have a cop monitoring craigslist 24/7.
 @Magic 8 Ball Not to sound ridiculous, but who will pay for 24 hour monitoring? Sadly, this is only one of thousands of examples of theft, and we don't have the money to run our police as it is.
Heard of a lot of people coming home to find they've been robbed lately. Scary! Wishing the best for this mom and her kids....
 @hopeforthefuture that's because the media needs to sell ads.  crime is still way down since even the early 2000s, but they didn't need to fill as many pages with ads.Â
@DT @hopeforthefuture I lived in a secure apartment building for years. I had both of my cars broken into. I also remember multiple times hearing someone trying my door as I watched movies late at night.
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I live in a 'good' neighborhood, there are constantly theft problems. There is a gas station nearby that is broken into at least three times a year, we can hear the alarm.
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Where ithere is an opportunity, criminal elements will take advantage.
@hopeforthefuture I have noticed the same thing, I'm thinking about getting an alarm.
Someone just robbed my recently deceased neighbors house the other day. Ridiculous.
Thieving low-lifes! I was set to donate a Gamecube and several games to charity. I'd like to give it them if possible..
 @Borderite92 Yes, and man do I have boys' clothes that might fit, that they're welcome to!
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 @the unvarnished truth Police are mainly a deterrent, they rarely prevent crime or even show up while a crime is in progress. They will respond of course, and depending on your location can be anywhere from a couple of minutes to 15 min. away. So consider yourself on your own and protect yourself accordingly.
 @the unvarnished truth Waiting for the video.
Just a little hint......she said she has "two baseball bats by the door". Try a can of wasp/hornet spray. It can shoot 20 ft and will totally ruin their eyes. You can buy it at any grocery or feed/farm store, ect.
komo, could you please contact me with contact info for her. i believe this is family. i have lost touch with local family and would like to reconnect. i just need to call her and find out if her late husband was one of my cousins. thanks, doug. drakonisracing@comcast.net
@Douglas Gunter I emailed you
 @Douglas Gunter What was your cousins name?
 @Douglas Gunter Is this her? https://www.facebook.com/tamsin.s.gunter?fref=ts
How horrible. When something like that happens, thieves make out with a lot more than just your possessions. It's hard to feel safe in your own home after you've been violated like that. Glad no one was hurt, though.Â
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Not that it's the case here, but people should be very careful what they post on Facebook and other social media sites. When you tell the "world" you're going on vacation, (or even that you'll be in the hospital with your sick child for a few days) you never know who might try to take advantage of the fact that no one's home. Â Again, not saying that's what happened here... just be careful.Â
@LunchWithABear I agree! A few of my friends, my niece included, are always not only posting about how excited they are to leave on such-n-such a date, but they are posting pictures while they are there and tagging their location....